Men's Basketball Comes From Behind to Beat Austin

February 10, 2024

SHERMAN, Texas - The University of Dallas men's basketball team won their conference matchup against Austin College 74-71 on Saturday, improving to 11-13 on the year and 7-8 in conference play.

It was a tale of two very different halves for the Crusaders against the Roos.  Things couldn't have gone much worse for them in the first half.  They were down by double-digits after just three and a half minutes, and it took them nearly six minutes to make their first field goal.  

Dallas had one of their worst offensive halves of the season, shooting just 21% from the field while making just seven field goals in the first 20 minutes.  Despite performing well below their expectations, they went into halftime trailing by just five points.

It didn't take long for the real Crusaders to show up in the second half.  They erased the deficit and took a 39-37 lead inside the first five minutes, going 3-of-5 from the field and 6-of-7 from the free throw line in that span.  

Dallas nearly doubled their production from the first half, helped in no small part by some lights-out shooting from beyond the arc.  The Crusaders shot 58% (7-of-12) from three, with Marcus Juarez leading the way scoring 14 points making all three of his attempted three-pointers in the half.  

It was the third game in a row that came down to the final buzzer for Dallas, as Austin's Joshua Joe got downcourt and managed to fire off a last ditch effort to tie the game, but came up short. 

Johny Olmsted led the team with 16 points, going 9-of-11 from the free throw line.  Juarez ended the night with 14 points, all of his points coming in the second half to spark the comeback.   

Up Next

The Crusaders will play their final game of the regular season on Sunday, Feb. 18 at 1:00 pm.  They will face Colorado College on the road in Colorado Springs.